Stay With Me
by suitsfan
Summary: Harvey's condo is being redecorated so Mike offers to let Harvey stay with him.


Written for a prompt on suits_meme. I actually kind of hate this..but whatever.

"Don't forget Harvey, I have that list of hotels for you to go through, and I'm going to need a definitive answer by tomorrow," Donna said.

"What hotels?" Mike butted in, glancing up from the papers in front of him.

"Just pay attention to your work, Mike."

"Harvey's place is being re-decorated, and he needs a place to stay for 5 days," Donna explained.

"Really, Harvey? Why don't you just come stay with me at my place?" Mike asked.

"I actually think that's a great idea!" Donna chimed in with a smile.

"Uh, thanks, but no thanks, kid."

"Why not?" Mike asked, looking a little bit hurt that Harvey had shot his idea down so fast.

"Yeah, why not, Harvey?"

"Donna, I think you've been helpful enough, could you maybe just, I don't know, leave now?" Harvey said, shooting her a look.

"Come on, Harvey. It's only five days. Plus, you won't believe the things I found about about bed bugs and hotels when I was doing research for that case awhile back," Mike said, giving his best fake shudder.

Harvey's face contorted with disgust upon hearing that. "Maybe it's not too bad of an idea after all, and like you said, it's only 5 days, I think I can manage putting up with you for that long."

"So it's settled then? I'll bring you a spare key sometime this week, Roomie!"

"Wait. Hold up. I'm only staying with you under one condition," Harvey said.

"And what would that be?"

"That you _never_ call me 'Roomie' again. Under any circumstance. Understood?"

"Right. You got it, no more roomie," Mike said as he collected his papers off the table in front of him and left Harvey's office.

"It's kind of sweet, you know?" Donna said to Harvey once Mike had left.

"Funny, it almost sounds like you're still in this very room, when I could have sworn I asked you to leave."

"I'm just waiting for my 'thank you'," she said.

"And what exactly am I supposed to be thanking you for?"

"Well I did just help get you a 5 day sleepover at Mike Ross' place."

"Sorry, still don't see how that warrants a thank you. Especially when I could be staying at a 5 star hotel instead."

"Oh, come on, Harvey. I see the way you look at him, you're not as subtle as you think you are."

"Okay. Conversation is officially over. Out. Now," Harvey demanded, gesturing to the door of his office.

"Fine, I'm going," Donna said throwing her arms up in the air in defeat.

"Finally," Harvey mouthed, the corners of his mouth turning slightly upward into a half-smile once she had cleared the room completely.

Harvey doesn't know why it surprised him that Mike was actually serious about giving him a spare key, but nonetheless he was surprised that Mike was pressing the key into his palm two days later. The rest of the work week seemed to fly by and Harvey had packed up the things he needed for the next 5 days that morning and loaded them into the back of Ray's car so he could take them over to Mike's place after work.

"Are you sure you're okay with me just going to your apartment without you there?" Harvey asked, leaning over Mike's cubicle at the end of the day.

"Of course. I mean, why wouldn't I be? It's not like I don't trust you. Plus, I probably have about an hour and a half's worth of work left, and I don't want to hold you up and make you wait just because of that. So just go ahead, you can unpack and make yourself at home awhile."

"All right...I guess I'll see you when you finish then," Harvey said a bit reluctantly. He figured he'd feel weird just lingering around in Mike's apartment without him there, but Mike had insisted, so with that said, he headed out.

Harvey unloaded his over-sized black leather duffel bag from the trunk of Ray's car, Ray offered to help carry it inside, but Harvey refused and instead thanked him for the ride, giving him a reminder that he'd need picked up here instead of his condo for the next 5 days, before watching him drive off down the street.

Harvey glanced up, giving the large brick building a once over with his eyes, before walking in through the entrance. He was already missing his elevator as he lugged his bag up 3 flights of stairs, eventually tossing the bag down in front of the apartment door to dig for the key buried in his pocket.

He'd never actually seen the inside of Mike's apartment, but it wasn't as bad as he had imagined. It was messy, but this was Mike's apartment after all, if he had walked into a place that was well organized he probably would have assumed he was in the wrong place and left immediately.

He tossed his bag down on the floor and sort of walked around for awhile, aimlessly browsing, it's not like he was trying to snoop, not really, it was more like familiarizing himself with his surroundings. Yeah, that's what it was.

He saw some pictures in frames hanging on the wall of Mike with what he assumed was the infamous Grammy he was forever going on about. Mike's smile was apparently even contagious via pictures, because it made Harvey smile involuntarily, to which he caught himself doing and forced himself to stop immediately. He also saw some pictures of Mike with Trevor which made him roll his eyes, and mouth 'dick' under his breath.

He ventured out into the kitchen area next, opening Mike's fridge and noticing it was all but empty, sans a few water bottles, an almost empty carton of milk and a few cans of Red Bull scattered about the shelves. He checked the freezer, which was even more barren then the fridge had been, minus a carton of chocolate ice cream, and fudge popsicles. Did this kid even eat anything that wasn't pure sugar?

He closed the door and moved over to open one of the cupboard doors. Lucky Charms? Cocoa Puffs? Fruit Loops? I guess that answered his question as to if Mike consumed anything that wasn't sugar. Oh wait, correction, Harvey had found a cupboard stacked with Ramen noodles. Jesus, no wonder the kid was so damn skinny. How Mike even managed to do the amount of work he did with clearly so little sustenance was completely beyond him.

Harvey pulled out his phone and text Mike.

"Ray is picking you up at 8. Be ready. No excuses."

"Okay," Mike text back.

Good. Now that he'd taken care of that, the next thing he did was call and make reservations at a restaurant for the two of them, because clearly Mike was in need of a good hot meal, and Ramen noodles weren't exactly going to cut it. Besides, Mike was letting him stay at his home, and treating him to dinner was the very least that Harvey could do.

So Harvey made the reservations and then dug through his bag for clothes to change into. He found a dark navy blue button up shirt and went to change in the bathroom, the entirely too small bathroom, might he add. He wasn't claustrophobic, but that bathroom certainly could make him feel like he was.

Afterwards he gave Ray a phone call to set things up, and asked for him to meet him outside of Mike's apartment, allowing them enough time to get to Pearson Hardman to pick up Mike at 8. Of course, Ray continually impressed Harvey with his ability with the way he seemed to have the art of getting places in X amount of time down to science.

They were pulling up to Pearson Hardman, just as the clock rolled over to 8 o'clock. He could see Mike standing on the sidewalk checking his bike lock, for what Harvey assumes was probably the 5th or 6th time.

"Harvey, what are you doing here?" Mike asked upon opening the door to see Harvey sitting there.

"It's been a long day, so I figured you were probably hungry and we should grab something to eat. That okay with you?"

"Yeah, no, that sounds great actually...I'm starving."

After having raided Mike's fridge and cupboards earlier, Harvey could certainly see why.

Harvey had picked a place that wasn't nearly as fancy as his normal digs, but it was a place that he figured Mike would enjoy. He often noticed how relatively uncomfortable and out of his element Mike always seemed to be whenever they took clients to upscale restaurants for meetings, so he decided against that, because this was just him and Mike, and there weren't any clients here to impress tonight.

This was really the first time they had dinner together that didn't involve it being together because of something work related. Of course, that didn't stop Mike from talking about work.

He told Harvey about the way Louis constantly piles on work even when he's already buried up to his neck with work from him. He told Harvey about the way the other associates constantly harass and tease him about everything. Harvey knew that Louis was sneaky, and he didn't doubt that he had been using Mike to help get his own work done behind his back, and he also knew that the other associates could be douchebags, but it was somehow different actually hearing Mike talk about it. Sometimes Harvey forgot that just because he didn't use his emotions to handle everything, that Mike did, and the vulnerability and exasperation in Mike's voice tonight while he told Harvey these things was a reminder of just that.

Of course, being a good lawyer wasn't about getting everybody or even anybody to_ like_ you, which Mike seemed to want everybody to do, but rather you want everybody to _respect_ you. However, that doesn't mean that he couldn't have a talk with Louis in the morning, and then maybe give a reminder to those other associates as to just who Mike Ross is working for. It certainly wouldn't hurt, and it would maybe Mike's life a little easier, for a little while, anyway. Mike was letting Harvey stay at his place, so really, it was just a matter of being the right thing to do. That's what Harvey had convinced himself of anyway.

"Full?" Harvey asked, as he watched Mike stretch back into his chair.

"I don't think I'm going to be able to eat for a week," Mike groaned.

Harvey just laughed, he was glad Mike would at least be eating decently while he was here for the week. He'd make sure of that much.

"Thanks for treating me to dinner, Harvey. I really appreciate it."

"Well, you're letting me stay at your place, figured it's the least I could do."

"You know you don't owe me anything for letting you stay at my place. I asked you because I wanted you to, not because I expect favors from you or expect you to be in my debt. You know that right?"

Harvey just nodded his head and gave a small smile. He wasn't exactly used to having people do things for him and not expecting something in return, so to hear Mike say that, and know that he was being completely sincere about it, well, that felt kind of good.

"You ready to get out of here?" Harvey asked.

"Absolutely," Mike said, standing up to grab his jacket off of the back of his chair. They walked out to the car where Ray was waiting for them, Harvey opened the door for Mike and slid in next to him. Harvey noticed how Mike was pulling his jacket tight around himself.

"Hey Ray, could you turn up the heat?" Harvey called from the backseat.

"Sure thing, boss!" Ray said back, as he reached down to adjust the heat.

"Thank you," Mike turned and mouthed to Harvey. Harvey gave him an acknowledging head tilt and the rest of the ride home was spent in silence.

"I'm sorry it's so messy in here," Mike apologized when they walked through the door.

"It's all right, it's very.._you_." Harvey smiled.

"Are you tired yet?" Mike asked.

"I'm exhausted."

"Well, you can sleep in the bed, I'll take the couch."

"No, Mike. I'm not going to make you sleep on the couch in your own place."

"Harvey, it's fine, really. I usually end up passed out on this couch anyway. You should take the bed, you're my guest."

"Are you sure?" Harvey asked once more, hoping Mike would change his mind, because he really did feel bad taking the kid's bed from him.

"I'm positive. Seriously, go."

"All right, if you say so," Harvey said, reluctantly picking up his duffel bag and walking it over next to the bed. Harvey dug his toothbrush and toothpaste from his bag and walked into the bathroom to brush his teeth. When he was done he laid his toothbrush down next to Mike's. It's been a long time since he had a toothbrush at someone's house, even if it was just going to be for a few days.

When Harvey walked back out into the living room he saw Mike hunched over with papers sprawled out on the coffee table in front of him, pen behind his ear, and highlighter sticking out of his mouth.

"Make sure you get some sleep at some point tonight. I can't have you falling asleep on the floor of the office tomorrow," Harvey said.

"I will," Mike said, his words muffled by the highlighter in his mouth.

"Night, Mike."

"Night, Harvey."

Mike tried his best to keep his eyes focused on his paperwork, despite being able to see Harvey sitting on the ledge of the bed from the corner of his eyes. He could see him unbuttoning his shirt, and then pulling his arms out of the sleeves. Folding the shirt neatly before setting it aside, and then he watched as he stood up, and unbuttoned his pants, and pulled them off, proceeding to fold those just as neatly as he had folded his shirt.

And yeah, Mike totally wasn't watching that. Nor was he watching his boss as he crawled under the sheets and let out a contented sigh. His boss was just half naked in his bed right now, not a big deal. But why the hell was it suddenly so damn hot in here? Mike got up and walked to the kitchen to get a glass of cold water, and chugged it down while standing there. He sat the now empty glass down and splashed some cold water on his face. That seemed to do the trick.

Mike sat back down on the sofa and focused on getting some work done. He didn't foresee much sleep being in his future because despite what he had told Harvey, the couch really was ridiculously uncomfortable to sleep on, which is why he had offered to take it.

Harvey was surprised by how comfortable Mike's bed actually was. His sheets were soft, and they had a certain smell to them, that he couldn't quite pinpoint, but enjoyed nonetheless. It hadn't been more than 10 minutes of him lying there before he was fast asleep.

The sky was just starting to show the slightest sign of morning when Harvey woke up. He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, stretching his arms over his head and yawning. Climbing out of bed, he walked out into the living room where Mike was halfway hanging off the sofa, face down on top of a folder. He had the TV on, so Harvey found the remote and flipped it off. He decided that he would grab his shower before Mike woke up and then grab them coffee somewhere, since he would feel weird trying to make coffee in Mike's house, and he was sure Mike only had the cheapest kind on hand, anyway.

Harvey realized he had forgotten his shampoo when he was getting things ready for his shower. Guess he could just use Mike's until he could get some of his own. As Harvey stood under the barely there water pressure of the shower, he wondered how Mike could live like this. One thing that Harvey absolutely needed every day was a hot shower, with good water pressure, and this was not even close to something that resembled that.

Harvey squeezed some of Mike's shampoo into his hand, unlike the smell of the sheets, this smell he did recognize, coconut, with a hint of something spicy. He had smelled it plenty of times while just being around Mike, and always wondered what it was, but Harvey always figured it'd be weird to ask Mike about it, and even weirder to try to sniff him long enough to figure out the smell on his own. Now he knew.

After Harvey had showered and gotten dressed, he called a cab and went out on his coffee run, when he returned Mike was missing from the couch where he had been, totally out of it and twisted into a new awkward position that couldn't have been comfortable, when he left. He could hear the shower running, so he sat down the coffee, and brown paper bag, then pulled up a chair and started leafing through the newspaper he had bought, while sipping his coffee, and waiting for Mike to finish up in the shower.

Mike eventually emerged from the shower, hair spikier than usual, and shirt still unbuttoned and un-tucked, which he fixed as soon as he noticed Harvey staring at him.

"Harvey," Mike said, sounding surprised, "Where'd you go?"

"Coffee run" he said as he held up Mike's cup. "I also got you a muffin," he added, pointing at the bag on the counter.

"You didn't have to do that."

"Just sit. Eat," Harvey ordered, pointing at the empty chair.

Mike sat down, and opened the paper bag, he didn't normal eat breakfast, because he normally didn't have time for it, but he had gotten barely any sleep last night. It was hard for him to sleep knowing somebody else was in the house, he had been so use to being alone for so long, that he couldn't stop thinking about it. Couldn't stop thinking about Harvey laying in his bed, only a few feet away from him.

"Pumpkin Spice? This is my favorite kind of muffin. How'd you know?"

"You told me."

"No, I didn't."

"Guess it was just a lucky guess, then."

Harvey had actually overheard Mike talking to Rachel about muffins before, and remembered it since then. Not that he had actively tried to remember that, because he didn't care what Mike's favorite kind of muffin is, that information was useless to him, except now Mike seemed to be enjoying the type of muffin he remembered, so maybe the information wasn't so useless after all.

"You get any sleep last night?" Harvey asked, attempting to shift the subject.

"Yeah, I slept fine," Mike lied, "What about you?"

"Slept like a baby," Harvey said truthfully.

The small talk continued until they were ready to leave for work. Harvey grabbed his brief case and Mike tossed his messenger bag over his shoulder.

"You know, you really should get a briefcase," Harvey pointed out.

"And how am I supposed to carry a briefcase when I ride my bike?"

"Maybe you could get one of those little baskets that attach to the front of your bike."

"Yeah, that'll make me even more popular at work than I am already," Mike said sarcastically.

Once they were at the office, Harvey handed Mike what he needed done for the day, and Mike took it and headed back to his desk to get started, since it was a lot to get done, and he was sure Louis would be stopping by and dumping something off on him, as he usually did.

Mike had barely just gotten started on his work when he heard Kyle calling his name. He just did his best to ignore him, because as he learned right off the bat, that Kyle never has anything worth hearing. So Mike pretended that his music was too loud to hear him and kept working on the papers in front of him, that is, until Kyle walked up and pulled the ear bud from his ear.

"What do you want, Kyle?" Mike asked, annoyance in his voice.

"You suck at being sociable, you know that, Ross?"

"I'm not worried about being sociable, I just want to get my work done."

"Get your work done so you can go home and get fucked by Specter, right?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh come on, Ross. You and Specter are the water cooler talk around here. Especially now that he's sleeping over at your house. Sounds like you guys are getting serious."

"It's not like that at all. He just needed a place to stay, that's all."

"That's not what I heard."

"It doesn't matter what you heard, because it's not true."

"So what, you're trying to tell me that the Harvey Specter stayed over at your place and you guys didn't fuck?"

"No! Of course not. Now would you please just leave me the hell alone already?"

"I'm sure you gave him a blowjob though, right?"

"Kyle..seriously, go away."

"What seems to be the problem here?" Harvey said as he stepped in front of Mike's cubicle, right next to Kyle.

"No problem here. Was just having a friendly chat with Mike," Kyle replied.

"Is that true, Mike?" Harvey asked.

"Yeah, just friendly chat," Mike said, the tone of his voice not really matching the expression on his face.

"Get back to work, Kyle," Harvey ordered.

"Right away, Mr. Specter," Kyle said before scrambling off.

"What was that all about?" Harvey asked once Kyle was out of ear shot.

"It was nothing."

"Really? Because the look on your face right now doesn't exactly indicate that it was nothing."

"Harvey, could we please just not do this right now? I just want to get my work done."

"Speaking of, I got these for you," Harvey said before tossing a stack of papers onto his desk, "So, since you don't want to talk, might as well get started on them."

Yeah, it was a lot of work for Mike to do, but Harvey wouldn't give him anything that he didn't think he was capable of, and Mike was certainly capable of handling the work that he had just dealt out to him. Plus, Mike wouldn't have to worry about dealing with Louis dumping work off on to him, because Harvey had tricked Louis into taking a case that Harvey himself had wanted nothing to do with. He just made Louis think that he wanted it, and that was enough to make him jump at it and want to take it.

So now Louis was distracted with trying to win a case that he thought Harvey had wanted just so he could gloat to him about it. Of course, Harvey would be the one gloating when all was said and done, which was just the cherry on top, since the main goal was to keep Mike Louis-free for the day.

The rest of Harvey's day was mostly spent in and out of meetings with clients, and it the day had felt entirely too long, so he was happy when 6 o'clock rolled up on the clock so he could get out of here, go home, well his home for now anyway, and relax. He decided to stop off and see how Mike was doing, he hadn't seen him since he had taken the paperwork.

"You're not finished, yet?"

"Are you serious right now? Do you even realize how much work you gave me?"

"Relax, Mike. I was joking. I just wanted to know if you needed Ray to pick you up?"

"No, thanks. I could use the bike ride home to clear my head."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Thanks for the offer though."

"Make sure you wear your helmet," Harvey said.

"I thought you hated my helmet?"

"I like this though," Harvey said, tapping Mike on his head.

"Right. Will do."

"Also text me before you're ready to leave so I know when you'll be home."

"Got it."

Okay, so Mike kind of liked the way _home_ had sounded when Harvey said it. It just sounded..right. Mike shook the thought, because he definitely should not be thinking about Harvey like that. He was his boss, and friend, which Harvey may or may not deny the _friend_ part of that, depending who asked him, but certainly they were nothing more than that.

When Harvey got back to Mike's place, he sat down on the couch and flipped on the tv, the ridiculously small tv, mind you. Harvey wasn't at all surprised to learn that Mike didn't even have cable. Again, how the hell does he live like this? He flipped it off, because he doubted he was going to find anything good on the whole three channels that Mike actually did get. Maybe he'd just take a nap until Mike got home, all those meetings had been pretty exhausting after all, so he stretched himself out across the couch and tried to fall asleep.

Mike's couch was like trying to sleep on a pile of bricks though, except, the bricks might have been more comfortable. He was more appreciative of the fact that Mike had left him take the bed now, but also felt a little bad too, because there's no way Mike could possibly find that comfortable to sleep on. This was a problem that Harvey could fix.

Harvey called in a favor, which, there was a laundry list of people who owed him favors in this town, and having a favor owed to you is one of the best things you can have happen to you, because you never know when you're going to need one. Like if you want to replace somebody's old couch, and only have a short amount of time to do it before they get home from work. Winning a lawsuit for a client that happened to own a furniture store was coming in handy right about now.

The couch had been delivered, and they hauled out Mike's old one, which Harvey told them to hold onto it, just in case Mike wasn't happy about Harvey replacing his furniture while he was gone, which as Harvey sat on the new, much, much more comfortable couch, he didn't see this as being a hard case to argue, the couch spoke for itself, plus, Harvey could be pretty convincing on his own, if need be.

"What the hell, Harvey?" was the first thing Mike said when he walked through the door.

"I was hoping for more of a 'Honey, I'm home', but we can work on that."

"Where's my couch?"

"I'm sitting on it."

"No, Harvey. I mean my actual couch. The one that was here this morning when I left."

"Look Mike, that thing was hardly what I would call a couch to begin with."

"That's not the point. You can't just get rid of my things without even talking to me first."

"I would have asked you, but you would have said no."

"So you just do it without asking? How logical of you."

"I didn't get rid of your couch, not completely, and if you want it back, you can have it back, but could you please just sit down, and at least try this."

Mike just gave a defeated huff before walking over and sitting down next to Harvey on the sofa. It might have been easier to hate it if Harvey had not been sitting there with a smile plastered on his face right next to him or if it actually wasn't obscenely comfortable, like sitting on a pile of clouds.

"What do you think?" Harvey asked, almost rhetorically since he knew Mike would love it.

"Okay, so it's comfortable. But Harvey, there's no way I am going to be able to pay you back for this."

"You don't have to, I called in a favor for this."

"Called in a favor for a couch? What are you, in some kind of furniture mafia, or something?"

"Something like that," Harvey smiled, "How was work?"

"Exhausting..But I got most of the work done, and Louis actually didn't bug me for once, so I guess I shouldn't complain too much."

"What was going on with you and that douche bag earlier..you seemed kind of upset."

"It was just..nothing, really. He's just a dick, that's all."

"No wonder Louis has taken a shine to him. Birds of a feather and whatnot."

"Yeah..I think I'm going to find something to eat, and get some work done," Mike said in an attempt to change the subject.

"How about we order pizza and watch a movie instead?"

"That sounds better, but I can't, I really need to work."

"You just got off work, Mike. Take a break. It's not like your boss is going to fire you, because if you haven't noticed I'm kind of sitting right here, so relax. Go shower, change, whatever, I'll order the pizza."

"You sure?"

"Go. Now."

"Thanks."

A shower and dinner already sounded much better than more work, but add a movie and getting to spend some time with Harvey on the couch, just relaxing, sounded kind of perfect to Mike.

Mike eventually reappeared from the shower, out of his work clothes, and dressed down in sweatpants and a faded grey t-shirt, looking somewhat refreshed, like he was able to wash some of the stress from the day down the drain with his shower. He walked over to the couch and sat down next to Harvey, who seemed to be at the tail end of a conversation with somebody on the phone.

"Mind getting that?" Harvey mouthed to Mike when he heard the knock at the door, gesturing to the money on the coffee table, and then returning his focus back to the phone conversation.

Mike grabbed the money and walked to the door, retrieving the pizza, and bringing it back and sitting it on the table. Harvey had just hung up the phone.

"So, Harvey..I was thinking..since you bought dinner yesterday, and then again today..you should let me cook you dinner tomorrow."

"Appreciate the offer and all, but one of the benefits of me becoming a lawyer is the fact that I never have to eat Ramen again."

"Fair enough. What are your thoughts on spaghetti?"

"Haven't sworn it off."

"So you'll let me cook for you tomorrow night?" Mike asked, a trace of excitement seeping into his voice. Which in turn, made it next to impossible to say no to him.

"Sure, but I'll have you know, my future spaghetti eating endeavors are dependent upon how well you cook tomorrow night. So, no pressure."

"Trust me, Harvey, my spaghetti is going to knock your socks off."

"These are cashmere socks, and they do not knock off easily, so you had better bring your A game."

"Consider it done."

"All right, Rookie. Now how about you focus on eating your pizza before it gets cold?"

Mike just smiled and picked up his pizza, taking a bite, and then leaning back and allowing himself to sink into the couch. "Hey, who were you on the phone with when I came out of the shower?"

"I'm positive that's none of your business."

"Sorry. You're right. I just thought maybe it was something for work."

"Nothing work related. Wasn't anybody important, really."

The phone call had been the company that he had hired to re-decorate his condo, calling to inform him that they had finished everything ahead of schedule, and that he was welcome to go back home at any time. Harvey wasn't quite ready to go yet.

Sure, there were certain luxuries he missed about his condo, a hot shower with ridiculously good water pressure being at the top of that list, but his condo didn't have Mike. Which meant that he didn't have somebody to talk to after a long day of work, somebody to unwind with, and most of all, somebody that just genuinely seemed to care about everything he had to say, no matter what it was.

He was Harvey Specter, it's not like he couldn't find a warm body to share a bed with if he wanted to, but that's not the same as what this was; staying with Mike these past few days had been able to fill that ache of loneliness that he'd feel all too often at his own place, the one that he rarely ever acknowledged, and he knew this thing was temporary, in fact, the phone call had confirmed just how temporary it was, but he didn't plan to cut this thing any shorter than it had to be.

He spent the rest of the night on the couch with Mike, they ate their pizza, talked, and Harvey even helped him out with the work that he figured Mike was going to try to stay up all night attempting to do, and two heads are better than one, after all.

They were getting close to finishing it when Harvey walked out to the kitchen to get a bottle of water. The fridge was a mere 10 steps away from the sofa, but by the time Harvey had grabbed a bottle and turned to ask Mike if he wanted one, Mike was out cold. So Harvey shut the fridge door, and sat back down on the sofa with his bottle of water, and finished up the rest of Mike's work.

When he finished, which ended up taking a lot longer than expected, and again made him realize just how efficient Mike truly was at this kind of thing, he neatly tucked away the papers back into their respective folder and slid them back into Mike's messenger bag that was sitting next to the sofa. He stifled a yawn, and figured he might as well head to bed himself, as it was getting late. He grabbed a blanket that was thrown across the back of a chair and draped it over Mike, before turning out the lights in the living room, and heading to the back room.

He peeled off the layers of his suit, until he was left standing in just his boxers. Digging through his bag, he found a plain white t-shirt, and threw that on. He had learned that despite Mike's apartment being on the colder side, the comforter on his bed more than made up for it. He found himself sweating a kicking the covers off a few times, so figured he'd avoid that by dressing more appropriately tonight. Once in bed, he flipped off the light switch.

Normally at home he'd toss and turn, before being able to even think about falling asleep, but here, in Mike's bed, the sleep had seemed to come quick. He wasn't sure what to attribute that to. At first he thought maybe it was because there were less distractions, at his place he usually had the TV on in the bedroom, and he didn't have that option here.

So maybe it was just because he felt comfortable and relaxed. It was nice knowing that there was somebody else within a few short feet of him. Maybe it was cheesy, but he liked the feeling too much to really care. Of course, it's not like he exactly ever planned to share that sentiment with anyone.

"Morning."

"I'm sorry. Did I wake you?" Mike said, turning around to greet Harvey, who was rubbing sleepily at his eyes, and his hair was sticking up every which way, a sight that Mike was still a little taken aback by. Not to mention the fact that Harvey was wearing just his boxers and a t-shirt, which threw him off even more so.

"No. You didn't wake me," Harvey responded. Which was partially true, Mike didn't wake him, it was more so the cupboard doors he was opening and closing, and metal he was clanging around that had woken him.

"Oh..good. I'm glad. I made us coffee," Mike said, gesturing to the cups, even though the smell of coffee had already permeated the small apartment.

"I'm going to need it, with the day I have ahead of me," Harvey said, as he walked over and reached for the cup.

"Wait, no," Mike said, as he slid the mug just out of Harvey's reach.

"No?"

"I mean..just.. don't you think you should put some clothes on first?"

"I have clothes on."

"But like..maybe some pants?"

"Does the fact that I'm standing in your kitchen in my boxers make you uncomfortable, Mike?"

"No. I mean, uh, of course not, no, just my boss hanging out in my kitchen with no pants on, that's totally normal."

"I'll get dressed," Harvey said, as he turned to walk to the bedroom. He couldn't help but crack a smile at how flustered Mike had just been.

Harvey had grabbed his things from the bedroom, and disappeared into the bathroom, and when Mike heard the shower water start to run, he opted to try to distract his mind from it. It was bad enough that Harvey had him feeling like some stupid blubbering school girl, just by standing in the kitchen in his boxers, the last thing he needed to do was let his mind wander to Harvey in the shower. So to distract himself, he started to do a crossword puzzle from the newspaper. It seemed to work well enough.

"Can I have my coffee now?" Harvey said, as he stepped into the kitchen. He was very much Harvey Specter again. Three piece suit, not a single hair out of place. Perfectly perfect.

"Yeah, of course," Mike said, pushing the mug towards him.

Harvey picked up the mug, and took a sip from it, before setting it back down again.

"How did you sleep on the couch?"

"Good. Really good, actually. It's very comfortable."

"So you're saying I was right about it."

"If you insist on being petty, then yes, you were right about it."

"Music to my ears."

"Seriously though, thanks, Harvey. Also, sorry for crashing before we finished that work last night. I'll get it done first thing at the office."

"Don't worry about it. It's already finished."

"Really? You didn't have to do that, I would have finished it."

"I know you would have. There wasn't much left to do though, so I figured might as well. Besides, you looked too peaceful to disturb, and I think there's a saying about letting sleeping puppies lie or something like that."

"Do you actually think you're funny?"

"I absolutely think I'm funny." Harvey smiled behind his coffee mug.

"I bet. Guess we should get going soon?"

Harvey looked down at his watch, "It's about that time. Do you realize that you haven't been late to work at all this week? Wonder why that is?"

"I couldn't tell you. Besides, I'm hardly ever late, anyway."

"Hardly? Try every other day."

"Well, it's your fault."

"How's that?"

"It's to be determined, but rest assured, totally your fault."

"With an argument like that, I can see why you're the best fake lawyer I know."

"Yeah, yeah, real funny. Can we just go now?" Mike asked, as he threw his messenger bag over his shoulder.

"Yes. Let's go, before you make us both late."

"That reminds me, I was wondering, how late can you actually show up before it's considered late for you?"

"That is none of your business."

"10?"

No response.

"11? Seriously?"

"Mike. Go. Now. Or I'm making you run alongside the car."

"Would you really make me run alongside a car? Because I don't think you would."

"You don't think so? Try me."

"Could I at least have the Rocky theme playing as I run alongside the car?"

"Absolutely not."

"Ouch. I think someone woke up on the wrong side of _my_ bed today."

"Go."

"I'm going!"

Once Mike was out of sight, Harvey let the smile he had been holding back run across his face, before following.

It was a little weird going from home to work, because Harvey off the clock, was very much different from Harvey on the clock, Mike was learning.

"I'm going to need you to have these back to me no later than 2. Got it?" Harvey said, tossing a folder to the corner of his desk.

"I uh, okay. I can do that. But hey Harvey, I was thinking..about your meeting, I was wondering if-"

"No."

"You didn't even let me finish!"

"You were going to ask if you can sit in on it."

"Well, yeah, but-"

"Answer is still no. You have other work to do."

"Why can't I do both?"

"Mike, if you think just because I'm staying at your place, it's going to get you special privileges..you can just forget about it."

"I don't think that. I just thought maybe-"

"Why are you still here talking, when you should be back at your desk working?"

"Okay. Fine," Mike said, sounding a little more defeated than he had intended to.

Harvey was glad Mike had left the office when he did, because it was hard to resist just letting him go to the meeting. It was always hard to say no to those big blue eyes, especially when Mike put them to use for pleading purposes, but he had to say no on this one, and not because Mike couldn't have handled the meeting, hell, he probably could have been useful there, but Harvey wanted to make sure he was able to get his work done fairly early today.

Mike had been really putting the work in, staying late, and then working even after he got off work, and that was impressive to Harvey. It showed dedication and commitment to the job, and most of all, it showed he was trying, and he really wanted it, and Harvey liked seeing that from him. So, even before today, there were days when Harvey would take it easy on the kid, and lessen his work load for the day. It was something small, and Mike had never noticed, which was good, and exactly how Harvey had wanted it. After all, the last thing he wanted was for it to be mistaken for that caring word Mike always seemed to be throwing around.

It was a little after two when Mike finished up the work Harvey had given him. He ran down the hallway, in hopes that Harvey wouldn't notice that he was late with them, which was ridiculous, because it was Harvey, and he always noticed.

"He's not there," Donna said, catching Mike's attention as he tried to speed past her.

"He isn't? Where is he?"

"One of his meetings ran late, he just called and said he won't be back for another 20 minutes."

"Oh good," Mike said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Can you give these to him then?"

"Sure. I'm assuming these are the papers he wanted by 2?"

"Yes, I'm only 10 minutes late though, so if he asks could you just please tell him I had them in before then?"

"You just had to share your place with Harvey, so I'll cut you a break this time."

"You're the best."

"Even though, you did technically already get a lucky break by not having to serve the full term."

"I don't follow."

"You know, just with the re-modeling being finished early, and all. That almost never happens. I guess him being Harvey Specter had something to do with that."

"Oh..yeah, right. That," Mike said. "I, um, so we're good with the papers then, right?"

"You're good."

"Thanks again," Mike said, as he turned to walk back to his desk.

'If Harvey's condo was done, why hadn't be gone back yet? Maybe he was just planning on doing it today after work. But if that was the case, why hadn't he even bothered to say anything to him about it. Mike wondered if he should even bother with making dinner tonight for Harvey.

Probably not, Harvey could leave now, so why would he want to eat spaghetti in his 'crappy' apartment, when he could be eating Filet Mignon at some fancy restaurant? As he sat back down at his desk to work, he couldn't help feeling disappointed.

He buried himself in work for the rest of the day. He had just finished as the alarm on his watch went off. It was 6, the time he was originally planning to leave so he could get started on making dinner, but since he'd ruled that out, he might as well just find more work to do.

That was one good thing about this job, there was always something to do. Always a distraction. There were a lot of days when Mike could use those distractions to keep his mind off of other things.

Mike's phone vibrated across his desk. It was a text from Harvey.

_Might be a little late getting home, coerced into drinks with client. Still on for dinner?_

Mike definitely wasn't expecting the text to say that, but he was certainly relieved to read it. Mike text back:

_yeah. we're still on for dinner_

It took all the strength in his body to refrain from using a smiley face with that one. He knew how much he hated those. In fact, Harvey had given him a lecture once on how childish and unprofessional emoticons were.

_See you then, Chef Boyardee_, Harvey responded.

Once Mike received that text, he grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair, packed up his messenger bag, and headed off. He'd stop at the grocery store nearest his apartment on the way home, so he could lug the groceries as little distance as possible, considering he was riding his bike.

Mike didn't consider himself great at cooking, in fact, he didn't even consider himself _good_, but spaghetti was something he had perfected long ago. Not having a lot of money growing up, it was a meal he'd seen quite often. His Grammy would often try throwing different things into it to change it up, and she'd ask Mike for suggestions, and it almost became a challenge to see how many different ways they could change it up.

Needless to say, over the years, between the two of them, they had pretty much come up with the perfect recipe. Mike thinks Harvey would be impressed. He hoped so, anyway. He hadn't really ever cooked for anybody before, outside of his Grammy, and of course, he'd cooked for Trevor a few times before, but he figures that didn't count since they were usually high and Mike was mostly just being a scavenger chef in order to satisfy the serious case of munchies they both had. So that, was definitely not the same as this.

Everything was just about done. Mike decided to dig through one of the boxes that he had to find the old plates that his Grammy had given him. He'd never used them before, but figured now was a good a time as any, so he washed them off, and set them up at the table. He took a step back to admire the table he had set, it'd been a long time since he set a table, since usually he either ate his food off of paper plates, or out of brown paper bags, using plastic utensils when he was at home. He wondered if he should put a candle on the table.

He grabbed the one on the counter, sat it in the middle of the table and lit it. Taking another step back, he admired the table once more. Yeah. No. That looked way too weird. He wasn't on a date with Harvey. He was getting ready to outen it when the timer he'd set for the oven started going off. 'Damn it', he said to himself.

He grabbed the potholders, and started to pull the bread from the oven when he heard the front doorknob being turned. 'Shit, it's Harvey.' The distraction was enough to make him accidentally touch his hand on the oven rack while pulling it out. 'Fuck!' he shouted.

"It actually smells really good in here," Harvey said, as he closed the door behind him.

Mike threw the bread on the top of the stove and rushed to blow out the candle, and stick it back on the counter before Harvey noticed.

"Hey," Harvey said, as he walked into the kitchen. "What'd you do to yourself?" he asked, noticing Mike holding grasping at his hand.

"It's nothing."

"If it was nothing, I wouldn't have noticed it. What happened?"

"I uh, just burnt my hand. No big deal."

"Let me see," Harvey said, reaching out to grasp Mike's hand gently.

"Harvey, I'm all right. Really."

Harvey pulled Mike over to the sink, and let the water run cold before holding Mike's hand under it. "You keep that there. I'll get some ointment."

Harvey returned in a few short minutes, holding a tube of ointment.

"Where did you even get that?"

"From the store. Where else would I get it?"

"I mean..why do you carry ointment with you?"

"Always be prepared. Especially when you have a accident prone associate to look after."

"I'm not accident prone."

"Just hold still," Harvey said, as he dabbed Mike's skin dry, and applied the ointment to the wound, causing Mike to let out a small whimper.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Thanks, Doc."

Harvey screwed the cap back on the ointment and walked off to put it back where he had gotten it from.

"By the way, were you burning a candle or something?" Harvey asked as he walked back into the room.

"What? No. Why?"

"I don't know, it just smells like a candle does when it's been blown out."

"I haven't noticed the smell," Mike lied. "You hungry?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

"Absolutely. Let's eat."

"Honestly, one of the best meals I've ever had," Harvey said, as he leaned back in his chair.

"Yeah, right. You're just saying that to be nice."

"Yes, because I have a tendency to say things all the time, just to be _nice_," Harvey rolled his eyes.

"Well..thanks, then. I guess."

"That was the worst 'thank you', I've ever heard, and I've heard myself give thank you's."

"I'm sorry. I do appreciate it. But one of the best meals ever? Come on."

"Let me rephrase it then, Mr. I Can't Take A Compliment, this was one of the best meals I've ever eaten, cooked by somebody I know. Aside from your wine selection. It tasted like something that should be served out of a box."

"That's because the wine _was_ served from a box."

"Oh, that's just wrong on so many levels. Should actually be illegal. Remind me to look into that."

"Sorry," Mike laughed. "It's all I really had on hand. And I'm pretty sure I can't afford anything you drink, so it was the best I could do. But thank you, Harvey. I appreciate what you said."

"That's a much better thank you, and you're welcome. Now, since you cooked, let me get the dishes," Harvey said, as he started to gather up his plate.

"Harvey, no. You're my guest, you shouldn't have to do dishes."

"You're right. I am your guest, and I want to do this, so quit being so god damn stubborn and let me."

"Let's compromise. I wash, you dry."

"_I_ wash, _you_ dry."

"All right, fine. You win."

"Don't I always?" Harvey smiled.

"But you won the job of doing dishes, which really isn't a win at all. I mean, when's the last time you even did dishes? And dishwashers don't count."

"That's besides the point. Now let's get these dishes done, sometime before midnight would be preferred."

"Okay, Cinderella."

"Cinderella? Give me a break. If I'm anybody from that lame fairytale, it's Prince Charming."

"Right. You are so full of yourself, it's almost unbelievable. How about we just get these dishes done. That okay with you, Prince Charming?"

It was still all a little unreal to Mike. His boss, standing in his kitchen, helping him do dishes. Every time Harvey would hand him something to dry, he'd feel Harvey's hand brush up against him. His skin wet, and radiating with the heat from the water.

He wondered if Harvey was doing that on purpose. If he was, you'd certainly never be able to tell by his facial expression. Harvey had one of the best poker faces. The next time Harvey went to hand him something, Mike made sure to grab it by the very edge, and sure enough, Harvey's hand found it's way to his.

His thoughts may have wandered from there, if Harvey hadn't sneezed and startled him back to reality in an instant.

"Bless you," Mike said.

Harvey looked as if he was ready to say something, but sneezed twice more before he had the opportunity.

"Maybe you're allergic to doing the dishes," Mike joked. "By the way, you look adorable with soap bubbles on your nose like that."

"What?" Harvey said, as he immediately brought a hand up and tried to wipe them away.

"Still some there."

Harvey moved his hand along again, trying to wipe away whatever he had missed. "Now?" he asked.

"Still there."

"If you're screwing with me, I'm going to fire your ass," Harvey said.

"I'm not screwing with you. Here. Let me get it," Mike said. He placed on hand on the side of Harvey's face softly, and used his other to wipe away what Harvey had missed. Their eyes locked with each other and they stayed that way for a moment, neither one of them saying a word, and neither one of them wanting to be the one to break away.

"It's gone now," Mike finally managed to spit out.

He dropped his hand from Harvey's face and started to pull away, when Harvey leaned forward and captured Mike's mouth with his own, pulling him back towards him with a kiss. It was a moment that seemed to stretch forever, yet somehow still end all too soon.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have.." Harvey had started to apologize before being cut off by Mike pulling him into a kiss this time. He felt Mike's hand run through the back of his hair, pushing him into the kiss, and allowing him to taste every inch of his mouth.

Mike's hands were aggressively tugging at the buttons of Harvey's shirt now, and Harvey would have probably stopped anyone else doing the very same thing Mike was now, and remind them as to just how expensive that very shirt was, but because it was Mike, he couldn't have cared less.

They eventually managed to find their way into the bedroom, which is where Harvey immediately took whatever control of the situation Mike might have thought he had. He pulled Mike's shirt off over his head, before pushing him backwards onto the bed, and climbing on top of him.

"We shouldn't do this," Mike said in between being kissed recklessly.

"I know," Harvey breathed into Mike's mouth.

As they lay in bed next to each other, the silence is so loud it seems to drown out the sound of the heavy breathing still going on between the two of them. Their chests rise and fall, almost in synch with one another. Mike is fully expecting Harvey to say something first, so he waits patiently for that moment.

"My condo is finished." Harvey's not sure why those are the words he chooses to say first, especially after laying there for nearly 10 minutes running over various options in his head. Despite having just had sex with Mike, he felt panicked when Mike laid his head against his shoulder, and those words were what immediately spilled from his lips.

"What?"

"They finished early on my condo, so I'll probably head back there soon. Maybe tonight even."

"Why?"

"Because that's where I live."

"Harvey, you know what I meant. Why are you in such a rush to get back to your place?"

"I just don't want to be a burden."

"That's bullshit. Besides, you knew about your condo being done before today, so why didn't you just leave as soon as you found out?"

"How did you know that?"

Mike just shot Harvey a look that said it all.

"Right. _Donna_."

"So what is it, Harvey? You couldn't leave until you got me in bed?"

"Do you honestly think I would do something like that?"

"No. I don't. That's why I'm confused. I mean..the sex..was it? I mean..was I good enough?"

"You were perfect, Mike. It's not the sex, believe me," Harvey said, slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth before retreating almost instantly.

"So enlighten me. What's wrong? Please, Harvey. Tell me."

"Nothing is wrong. It's just..you kind of put your head on my shoulder."

"What?"

"You put your head on my shoulder, and it..I don't know. It's stupid. Forget it."

"I'm sorry I put my head on your shoulder. I should have known you didn't like that kind of thing."

"No. That's just it, I _did_ like it. It felt _right_."

"Do you know why that is? It's because you care about me!"

"It sounds a lot like you're gloating right now."

"That's probably because I am."

"I'm trying to be serious and you're gloating. Unbelievable."

"I'm sorry," Mike said, his tone suddenly turning serious. "Look Harvey, I like you, and these past few days have been wonderful, and I love having you around..even when you're doing ridiculous things like buying me a new couch while I'm at work. But if you want to go back to your place, that's fine, but don't do it because you're scared of _feelings_ or _caring_, do it because you miss your hot showers and water pressure, or the gigantic windows and fantastic view your condo has to offer. You once said you're tough, but fair, so please be fair to me."

"You're right, I do miss my hot showers in a bathroom that has room to move around in, and water pressure that is steady and doesn't come out in sporadic sputters. I miss my floor to ceiling windows, and my deck that provides an unrivaled view of the city. Your place though..well, it just has _you_."

"So, I guess you're going back to your place then," Mike said, the disappointment obvious in his voice.

"I am."

"Right. I figured. Can you at least just stay tonight yet?"

"No."

"Harvey. _Please_?"

"I can't. Because then you'd miss out on a chance to see the city lit up at night through those gigantic windows of my place."

"What?"

"You wanted me to be fair. You showed me your place, so it's only fair that I show you mine. Right?"

"You never even let me step foot in your place yet. Would I have to sleep on the couch?"

"No. You can sleep in the bed. We both could. It's big."

"What if I accidentally put my head on your shoulder?"

"Accidentally?" Harvey asked.

"Well..accidentally on purpose."

"I think I could get used to it."

"I'll get my things," Mike said before rolling off the bed and scampering off.

Harvey wasn't sure exactly what it was that he and Mike had between them, he just knew it was something, and it felt good, and those two things are good enough to act upon. He enjoyed the time he had been spending with Mike, and wasn't willing to give it up, so inviting Mike to his place seemed like the next logical step.

Though, logic really had no part in it, because logic probably would have convinced him to stay far away from this situation, as so many things about it could blow up in his face and it wouldn't be good. However, he was thankful his heart had decided to step in and silence logic on this one, because this could be the start of something good.


End file.
